F1 2017 driver review: Felipe Massa

Hopes were high for Felipe Massa’s bonus season in Formula 1, only made possible by Nico Rosberg’s shock retirement and Valtteri Bottas’ subsequent move to Mercedes. Yet it failed to offer the kind of form that could secure the Brazilian a longer future in the series.

Massa made his love of the new-style cars for 2017 known through pre-season, and Williams made a good start to the year as he led the midfield runners by finishing sixth in Australia. After repeating the result in Bahrain, it was looking like Massa could become a serious force in the midfield fight.

But those races proved to be the high point of his season. Points were picked up in small doses leading up to the summer break, finishing no higher than ninth, although a possible podium – and maybe even a victory – was lost in Baku after a suspension failure that could have reshaped Massa’s season.

Instead it was Lance Stroll who took the plaudits for hitting the podium in Baku, with Massa failing to record a result better than P8 until the penultimate race of the year on home soil in Brazil.

But it was at Interlagos we were treated to a display of Massa at his best. A perfect drive saw him beat former Ferrari teammate Fernando Alonso in a race-long fight and take P7, acting as a solid sign-off to his home fans.

While it was far from being the season Massa wanted to say goodbye with, he was nevertheless ready to say goodbye this time around – something he wasn’t 12 months ago. It proved to be a classy end to a classy F1 career.

Season High: Saying goodbye to Brazil with a perfect drive to P7.

Season Low: Losing a possible podium or victory in Baku due to a suspension failure.